Laura Nilsson pushed shipping pallets piled high with boxes of surgical gowns, syringes and other medical supplies into a waiting truck at the Partners for World Health warehouse in Portland last week.
A team of volunteers worked with Nilsson, the nonprofit’s director of global programs, to fill practically every available inch of space in the container. It would soon be on its way to Syria, a war-torn country that deposed dictator Bashar al-Assad in December.
The Partners for World Health routinely sends surplus medical supplies donated by hospitals, dentists’ offices and other health care providers to wherever they are needed — often poor countries that lack a medical infrastructure and regions that are experiencing war or are dealing with natural disasters.
The nonprofit does not receive funding from the global relief agency that the Trump administration has largely shut down, the U.S. Agency for International Development, but the ripple effects of the loss of humanitarian aid has placed additional pressure on nonprofits like Partners for World Health.
Paul Golding, the organization’s director of advancement, said humanitarian groups working in countries that were receiving aid from USAID are now reaching out to Partners for World Health for help.
“Whatever USAID once was, it’s probably never going to be the same,” Golding said. “We’ve already seen people reach out to us to say, ‘We need help, equipment, supplies. Send more aid.'”
At the same time, Golding said, the hobbling of USAID is making it more difficult for recipients of medical supplies to get the supplies that Partners for World Health has ready to ship them. The groups receiving the supplies typically pay the costs for customs and shipping, and they may no longer have the funds.
An anonymous donor gave Partners for World Health $100,000 that the nonprofit is attempting to match with small individual donors to cover the customs and shipping costs so that it can continue sending medical supplies without interruption.
A BIG VOID
Golding said nonprofits like PWH are “part of the fabric” of humanitarian aid — food, medicine, doctors and nurses responding to crises around the world. But they cannot replace USAID, he said.
“The scale of what organizations like ours do is not anywhere near the scale of what USAID does,” Golding said. USAID had about a $40 billion budget for aid to 130 countries before it was dismantled by the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, a team led by billionaire Elon Musk that’s slashing programs and laying off federal workers.
The future of USAID could be determined by federal courts, which are already weighing a lawsuit challenging the legality of the cuts. The agency was created during the 1960s by a federal law, and typically an agency can’t be deleted unless Congress passes another law to shut it down. In this case, the Trump administration is attempting to close the agency entirely through executive power.
While the battle over the future of USAID plays out in court, most humanitarian aid that flowed from USAID is shut down.
Elizabeth McLellan, founder and CEO of Partners for World Health, said in an email response to questions that the “cuts to USAID will result in a dramatic need escalating in the developing world.”
“So many in our world depended on those funds for medicine and supplies,” wrote McLellan, who is stepping down from her CEO role at the end of the year.
Even without the increased demand from the current USAID funding cuts, demand for aid from Partners for World Health had already increased in recent years.
Among other things, the group has sent millions of dollars worth of surgical instruments, scanners, defibrillators and imaging equipment to Ukraine since the Russian invasion three years ago, trucking the supplies through Poland.
CRISES WILL WORSEN
The number of shipments PWH sends out has doubled in recent years, to about 30 shipments per year. The Portland nonprofit is adding a location in Westbrook in 2025 and hopes to also expand to the North Shore of Massachusetts, Golding said. Many of its donations come from Massachusetts hospitals.
The Portland warehouse is packed with medical supplies — orthopedic walking boots, wound care items, crutches and outdated medical devices are just some of the supplies that line the walls.
Golding said PWH is glad to help, but the humanitarian crises will worsen with the dismantling of USAID.
“It’s going to be very drastic,” Golding said. “What we are basically saying to some of the most poor, vulnerable people in the world, who lack access to clean water and enough food, is that you are on your own.”
To donate or learn more about the Portland nonprofit, go to partnersforworldhealth.org or call 207-774-5555.
We invite you to add your comments. We encourage a thoughtful exchange of ideas and information on this website. By joining the conversation, you are agreeing to our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is found on our FAQs. You can modify your screen name here.
Comments are managed by our staff during regular business hours Monday through Friday as well as limited hours on Saturday and Sunday. Comments held for moderation outside of those hours may take longer to approve.
Join the Conversation
Please sign into your CentralMaine.com account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe. Questions? Please see our FAQs.